Baylis had a job blogging for Montreal's tourism bureau, but he
only earned a $37,000 or so per year.

"At that point I decided that I'd work as hard as I possibly
could and start saving $500 per month," he told Business Insider. "That money slowly grew
and grew. There were really no magic tricks to it."

For the next two years, Baylis kept it simple in a low-rent,
minimally-furnished apartment and avoided splurging on clothes
and happy hour. He also came up with a creative plan to subsidize
his bohemian lifestyle: he'd "volunteer" on projects, like
teaching English in Laos, in exchange for food and accomodation.
A Visa Dividend card would cover the rest.

"The idea was to turn myself into a more complex and textured
human being," he said. "I got the Elizabeth Gilbert 'Eat, Pray, Love' jokes
from my friends, but I really wanted to speak to the realities of
different corners of the world."

When Baylis left work in December 2010, he'd saved about $10,000
and launched his new blog, DanielBaylis.ca.
He'd use it to religiously document everything in video, photos,
podcasts and traveler profiles. Then he'd parlay the project into
the next phase of his career as travel writer and social media
guru.

After surrendering his cell phone and apartment in December,
Baylis boarded his first flight from Montreal to New Orleans. He
felt his stomach sink with fear. Was he really prepared to do
this? Financially, yes. Emotionally, not quite. Here's how he
dealt with the first part and landed a stellar new job a year
later.

He spent about $2,350 on food, local transport and cultural
activities (museums, tours).

"I didn't buy an around-the-world ticket because many of my
destinations and work projects were unconfirmed/undecided before
my departure," he wrote. "I opted to maintain greater
flexibility, and ended up visiting countries and participating in
projects based on the recommendations of people I met on the
road."

That flexibility didn't come cheap. Booking flights 3-4 weeks in
advance as opposed to six weeks prior made airfare his biggest
expense. But when plans fell through—"Morocco kicked me in
the b---s"and volunteering at a playhouse in Edinburg was so
grueling he quit—he learned to take things in stride. With enough
cash reserves to fall back on, it was OK if he needed a hotel for
the night, or to grab some food on the fly.

"I wanted to be the guy who spent a year living out of a
backpack, visiting continents," he wrote. "I had a hope/faith
that this experience will launch me into something that I
couldn't yet define."

Worth every cent

"Some of the work projects requested administrative fees, or had
other types of costs to be involved," he wrote. Which meant
shelling out $904 to join organizations like the Israel farm,
"Goats with the Wind," or Big Brother Mouse's English center in
Laos.

However, in blogging the ups and downs—like the time he was
mugged for his wallet and iPod in South Africa—Baylis grew a thick,
worldly skin. And developed an online following. Soon he was
hosting monthly Q&A sessions and writing weekly letters home to curious fans who wanted to
hear about his latest adventure in Gao or Morocco.

"Why are you going on this year-long trip?" they asked. "What are
the people like in Laos?" (To "author my change" and "incredibly
friendly.")

By the time he returned home to Montreal in December, Baylis had
an online portfolio that was testament to his social media savvy.
Now he was ready to find work.

"The job of my dreams"

"There was a fear of professional suicide when I left because I
stepped away from a really great job," said Baylis. "But for me,
it all really went smoothly."

While his newfound skills of tile-laying and goat farming weren't
exactly strong sells, his "continued development" in video,
writing and photography were.

After traveling east to network and "put out the word that I'd be
returning to the workforce," Baylis bumped into friends who just
so happened to have a job offer. A few meetings later, he landed
the role as director of content for an ad & communications
agency, N/A.

"Leaving to travel was a bit of a sacrfice, but looking back it
was definitely worth it," he said. "I think they were interested
because I did a bit of good on the side by volunteering, and I
wasn't drifting around and getting drunk with other travelers,
which seems to be the norm."

And all that travel translated perfectly to what he does now,
"connecting brands with more meaning," he said.

"I really approached my journey in a different way." And it all
paid off in the end.